You want to use a first-round draft pick on a player who will leave you feeling comfortable about your decision (or as comfortable as you can get handing someone a check for millions of guaranteed dollars)? Right. Go with a linebacker.

"Sometimes, when it's a quarterback or a defensive lineman, a player will get forced up in the draft because it's a hard position to fill," former NFL general manager Charley Casserly says. "Other positions always kind of have a way of going in the second round: tight end, guard, safety. But linebacker, I think it just depends on the ability of the player.

"Linebacker doesn't seem to be overvalued or undervalued."

No. It's simply valued.

Consider that, in the past eight seasons, only one non-linebacker has been named Defensive Rookie of the Year: end Julius Peppers, Carolina's first-round pick in 2002. San Francisco middle linebacker Patrick Willis, another first-rounder, is the latest to win the honor, which he captured by demonstrating from the very start of last season his sideline-to-sideline playmaking prowess. In the 49ers' season-opening victory over Arizona, Willis had a team-high 11 tackles. He also forced Edgerrin James to fumble and his hit on Matt Leinart on a third-down blitz forced an incompletion.

Many NFL personnel evaluators believe that linebackers generally have the best chance for immediate success because they have the greatest freedom to utilize the full extent of their athletic skills. Find a linebacker who runs fast, changes directions quickly, and consistently puts himself in the vicinity of the ball, and you likely have one who will crack the starting lineup and stay there.

When discussing some of the reasons for Willis' outstanding rookie season, 49ers assistant head coach/defense Mike Singletary said, "He has great feet."

Jerod Mayo from Tennessee is flying up the draft boards and he can play Sam, Mike or Will linebacker. Dan Connor is also capable of all three spots. Some of the guys on this list are 3-4 outside linebackers, but if they go to the Patriots, coach Bill Belichick is going to teach them the defense from the inside backer alignment.

If a team is in the market for a middle linebacker to call the defense and make all the adjustments, they're going to value Connor more than Keith Rivers. If a 3-4 defense is looking for a strong inside backer to play over a guard, they need a big thick guy like Philip Wheeler (Georgia Tech) more than Al Highsmith (LSU). I stacked the linebackers as I think they will come off the draft board, but keep in mind that team's value these players in different ways because of their scheme. As one personnel director said to me, "Linebacker is a position teams could reach for."

It wouldn't be a shock if another linebacker won the award this year. Although the college crop doesn't have an abundance of exceptional linebackers, it does have a few who figure to make their presence felt right away.

And that doesn't include Ohio State's Vernon Gholston, a potential top overall choice who is a defensive end but figures to move to outside linebacker in the NFL.

As Bill Parcells, the Miami Dolphins' vice president of football operations, has said repeatedly in his illustrious career of leading NFL teams, "You can never have enough linebackers." And he has coached plenty of first-round draft linebackers. His best: Lawrence Taylor, the New York Giants' second overall choice in 1981 and Pro Football Hall of Fame member.

The 6-foot-3, 241-pound Rivers is widely viewed as the best pure outside linebacker in this year's draft, largely because 52 of his 240 career tackles came on third down. He is considered a dynamic playmaker, capable of covering plenty of ground.

"He's got really good tools," USC coach Pete Carroll says. "He's going to be a real good fit for somebody. Whether he's the best guy in the draft, I don't know. I just know you're getting good value if you pick this kid. He knows how to play the game really well."

"He's a really competitive kid," says New Orleans Saints vice president of player personnel Rick Mueller. "He showed that at the Senior Bowl and he showed that at SC."

One team that hasn't exactly followed Parcells' approach is the Philadelphia Eagles. They haven't used a first-round pick on a linebacker in 28 years.

"I do think the positions we have drafted (in the first round) are the positions we feel are really tough to find, especially the offensive tackles and defensive ends and even the defensive tackles," general manager Tom Heckert says. "But it still comes down to if we have a guy graded that high as a first-round player, I don't think we wouldn't take a guy just because he's a linebacker."

History, at least as it applies to other NFL teams, suggests that using that choice on a linebacker just might be wise investment after all.

Have a question for Vic on anything NFL related? Don't just sit there -- send it to AskVic@nfl.com , and the best questions will be answered throughout the season right here on NFL.com.